


Ex Machina

by ellamaraschino



Category: Ex Machina, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Genre: Alternate Universe, Artificial Intelligence, Dissociation, Ex Machina - Freeform, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Same ending as ex machina, a24 - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-03-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:20:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22772425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellamaraschino/pseuds/ellamaraschino
Summary: ex machina au where everything is the same except its kylux and poe's there too
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Armitage Hux/Kylo Ren
Comments: 12
Kudos: 21





	1. The Turing Test

“Question 4. Where is a soul?” asks Kylo.

“In the mind.” responds Hux. “Where is _your_ soul?” he picks, playing even at patronizing.

“I am the one asking the questions.” he smiles, lowering his own chin and speaking softly. A dark gaze meets a far bluer one.

Hux is taken aback for a moment, lips parting in slight surprise. That. . would be considered disobedience, right? Should that be documented at all? Not that it particularly _bothers_ him but. .

It was just a little unsettling, if anything.

“Right.” he adjusts his turtleneck, swallowing dryly.

“I’m sensing microscopic signs of discomfort. Did I say something out of place?”

“No! Not at all. I just- ah, _no_.” He glances up to Kylo once more and, relaxing again, graces him with a polite smile. “Not at all. I’m completely ready for the next question.”

Kylo returns the smile. “Great.”

* * *

Just in the few days before, Hux wanders and gazes in awe at the interior of his new residence for the next week, far too amazed by the size of the windows towering over him like a greenhouse, the pristine furniture so appropriately modern and a ridiculous price most likely, exotic plants absolutely everywhere, and assumedly the lack of human life. Just him and the man he barely notices approaching him through all the admiring, hand extended.

“You must be Armitage! Hux, right?” he offers a handshake Hux already assumes to be firm just by the pure testosterone oozing from this guy’s pores.

“Yes!” beams the programmer, extending his hand and accepting, intuition very right.

“Poe Dameron, great to finally meet you, man!"

“Oh-“ he shakes his head, dismissively. “ _My god_ , the pleasure’s seriously mine. Thank you so much for having me.”

Poe is an extremely well built man, luscious dark curls and a bone structure that’s earned him #14 on the _“most handsome men of the year”_ list. Hux could not tell you what magazine that was but it was a lunch conversation at the office that day.

“Well hey, you were chosen, man.” he muses with a voice that pours like wine.

“I uh,” Hux laughs and shakes his head. “Well, by a lottery.”

“Even so. Some computer-mind AI scanned over hundreds and _hundreds_ of names and something about yours made it just. . . _stop_.” He glides his hands about the air and pauses for dramatic effect. Hux has a feeling there’s gonna be a lot more of that to come over time.

“. . Uh, probably my weird long overly-English name.” he jokes, utilizing whatever terrible humor comes to his nervous, starstruck mind to lighten the anxious mood he’s no doubt producing in his presence.

“Well, hey.” Poe shrugs in a ‘I don’t know about that’ kind of manner as if he knows something his new house guest doesn’t. This guy has a galaxy of scientific information stored in that jacked system of his and selfishly, Hux is itching to collect even a little of it for himself and keep it forever in his mind like a cool rock a child found outside and stored in a little box. He just wants _one_.

Poe sits on the arm of his couch, like the coolest man Hux has ever met, and offers a warm, genuine Gatsby smile.

“Listen buddy. For the next few days, whats mine is yours. You have a keycard that opens whatever you are meant to open.” he gestures to the card still in Hux's fidgety hands. “My fridge is stocked with beer, you aren’t a teenager so there’s no _curfew_ or anything.” he laughs. “The only thing is — there’s no wifi and you don’t have access to the phone. Just a security reason, you understand.” he shrugs once more.

Hux nods. He figured. “Yeah, totally. Sounds great, thank you.”

“Let me show you your room.”

* * *

Hux’s room is extremely cozy, comfortable and perfect for the next few days. Poe is seemingly relaxed, pointing out certain areas of the space with his back turned to him before–

“What’s wrong?” he asks, not even looking at the other man.

“. . What?” asks Hux, raising both brows.

“What is it, there’s something wrong.” Poe turns around.

“Nothing’s wrong.” he shakes his head.

“ _I_ know. You’re thinking. . . that there are no windows in this room, aren’t you?”

“Not at all!” He really wasn’t but he’s sure Poe is aware and just looking for a reason to bring it up. "I was thinking how cool this is—"

“Well there’s a reason there aren’t any. This house? It’s not a house. It’s a research facility. And oh my _fuck_ , Armitage, I wanna show you what I’m researching so fucking badly—“ he’s back with the hand gestures again, shaping his hands as if he's trying to conceal a large orb with his palms. “—that it hurts. But I need you to do something for me first.”

_There’s_ the cool rock. Hux has to repress a grin in his excitement. He nods fast.

“Yes. Yes, whatever, hit me.”

* * *

Hux is seated in sheer curiosity at the small table in the corner of the room. The NDA is gently slid onto the surface and the redhead rests both wrists beside it as he reads it aloud. Uncertainty creeps in. This is a _legal document_. Hux prides himself on being prepared for anything, more of an _organized_ programmer that takes a challenge and puts it in a neat color-coded box, and he’ll admit he feels a little stupid for not anticipating this but this is a _legal document_. And legal documents freak him out.

“I think I need a lawyer.” he murmurs.

“You aren’t being charged with anything.” shrugs Poe.

"I mean. . yet."

“I'd say it's pretty standard stuff.”

"It doesn’t feel very standard.” he turns to the CEO.

“Well hey man, no one said you had to sign it. You and I could just _hang out_ for the next week, boss to programmer bonding time. .” Poe strides on over to the desk and hovers over it, pursing his lips in indifference and looking at Hux like it’s mere choice of where to go for dinner. “But when this reaches media coverage and becomes the biggest thing since Gaga wearing a fuckin’ sirloin on her tits. . you’re just gonna regret it for the rest of your life.”

Poe shrugs and smiles, a total juxtaposition from the intensity of his suggestion.

Hux stares up at him and after only a moment of thought — surely any longer would lead to unproductive internal questions leading to wasted time potentially spent signing the form — he decides Poe is 100% right and, easily bested by the world of marvelous possibilities, sighs in defeat. Fuck it. He wants that cool rock.

A quick, mindless signature is scribbled and Poe smiles like a devil accepting an offer. “ _Good call._ " He pulls back the sheet of paper and folds it in half. "You ever heard of the turing test?”

Hux looks up so fast from the file on the table, every doubt and every consideration that he’s been brewing on for the past five minutes have completely slipped his mind.

 _No fucking way._ “Yeah. Yeah, I’ve heard of the turing test.”

Poe looks up expectant of proof.

“It’s when a human interacts with a computer. If the human can’t tell it’s a computer, it passes the test.” Hux grins from ear to ear and pauses in thought before leaning in. “Are you building an AI?” He can not fucking believe he’s having this conversation.

“I’ve already built one.” leers Poe, with a knowing smirk. “Armitage. Get ready to be the human component in the greatest evolutionary experiment known to man.”


	2. Kylo: Session 1

After having been led to an entirely new space just down the hall, Hux feels the door shut behind him. He is alone, Poe didn't enter with him. Well, he probably sees this every day. It isn't his job to test it anymore, it's Hux's.

He wasn’t worried about the lack of windows in **his own** room and of course he isn’t _complaining_ but something about _**this** one _ feels a bit off. There's a desk in the corner with paper and a pencil beside it, indicating something far more _intelligent_ than Hux expected. Of course he can't approach far and examine, he's only allowed view from the glass. Essentially, the machine has the room.

There are a neat array of exotic plants sitting behind a window in the back for courteous decoration to the creation, positively unable to be reached if you wanted to so much as touch a leaf or water the soil. Do you need to? Not one bud nor flower has died; no shriveled up, dry vegetation on the floor to be crunched upon because you simply can not enter the space. He wonders if they’re real. They seem real.

A figure steps out from behind one of the walls, gentle and careful to meet his visitor. He seems surprised, like he wasn't expecting this. Hux remains still and gazes upon the creation with parted lips and a slightly furrowed brow.

He’s perfect, abdomen seemingly carved from stone yet so unmistakably human. However, patches of skin missing and prove otherwise with wires and a dim blue glow emitting from them. A hive-patterned metal fences them from being tampered with, leaving them like an artshow behind observable protection. His raven hair rests against a protruding jawline and isn't synthetic or too plastic _whatsoever_. His eyes. . dark roast shaded and shaped of almonds, conveying a gaze of such docility and innocence. He looks like a _human_. Uncertainty vanishes once again. Hux is staring.

A sheet of glass separates the two men like a separate room. The two make eye contact. _He_ seems real too.

“Hello.” His voice is deep, soothing almost.

“Hi.” says Hux, feeling a bit negligible in such a special and phenomenal presence. When greeting, his chin held high to produce a clear tone and accent slightly buried. He speaks as if Kylo could misinterpret him. Like the code hasn’t been perfected to surpass these kinds of microscopic quirks in human beings before initial interaction. Underestimated, like he doesn’t know.

“Who are you?” the man asks with such angelic charm and Hux almost forgets.

“My name is-” he swallows, throat dry. “Armitage Hux. It’s really nice to meet you.”

“It's nice to meet you too, Armitage.”

Hux notes his impeccable use of portmanteaus. Such a lack of confusion, full awareness of what he's doing with his words. That's so advanced for a computer! _Fascinating!_ How long has he known how?

“Do you have a name?” he inquires, curious.

“Kylo RN01. But Poe calls me Kylo Ren.”

"Kylo." Hux smiles, clearly amazed. "What does RN stand for?"

"Research Number."

"So does the 01 mean that you're the first of your kind?"

"I believe it does. Are you a friend of Poe's?"

"Um! Sure." He tenses and nods, gaze flickering subtle to the camera above him. Fuck, **sure** , he _guesses they're friends now_ for the sake of this conversation. Does Kylo know what he's here for, he wonders.

"Would you like to be my friend?" A glimmer of hope shines in such an intense gaze, how can Hux refuse him. **_He_** is the cool rock. He would do absolutely anything this installation asked if it meant he'd gain a _sliver_ of information on him. He is **ready** for this trek.

"Of course." he offers a warm smile.

"And will you come back tomorrow, Armitage?"

"Naturally. We're friends now, right?"

Kylo beams. "Yes."

* * *

"Oh my god, he's absolutely incredible!" Hux beams. He's been gushing about Kylo all morning. "His programming is immaculate! The way he speaks to you, you would have absolutely no idea he's not human!"

"And that is _exactly_ why I allowed you to meet with him." Poe holds his hands out. “We're far past the original Turing rules. If you weren't able to chat face-to-face, you'd think he has consciousness immediately and it'd take more time trying to convince you that he _doesn't_ than the original plan. . . Hence a formal introduction." He gestures, gazing up at his guest from a couch in his living room. He takes a sip of beer. "He's good, isn't he?"

"Yeah!" Hux grins and nods quickly. "He's _amazing_!"

"So you're impressed."

"I am!"

"Well that's great man." he shrugs. "Now you'll just have to talk to him and update me on your progress. Of course, I'll be watching on the cameras and making my own notes but I do want your insight as well, if that's alright with you."

"Yes! Of course, that sounds-" A laugh. He's a kid in a candy store. "That sounds _great_."

"Cheers."

"Cheers!"

Poe extends the barrel of his bottle and Hux merrily clinks his own against it. They drink. Here's to the next few days of research.

* * *

That night, Hux is shrugging off the black turtleneck he'd be wearing throughout the day, glimpsing in the mirror for a moment and shaking his head as he remembers Kylo. His frame. . His _voice_. . At the remembrance of how he _smiled_ when he merely agreed to be his friend, a smile pulls involuntary at his mouth and he turns away to discard his clothes before hopping in the shower before bed. He doesn't know if he'll even be able to sleep after that, he already feels his heart racing in elation.

As he's drying off with probably one of the softest towels he's ever used, a dull buzz echoes seemingly throughout the halls, not just his room. A red glow falls upon the space and he hears a female voice far more robotic than Kylo's speak calmly over the speakers. It's the same voice in the box that offered him his keycard when he entered the house.

" **POWER CUT. BACKUP POWER ACTIVATED.** "

Brow furrowing, Hux pulls on his pajamas and tries the door to attempt to ask Poe what's going on. Should he be concerned? The door doesn't open. He tries his keycard. Nothing. Fear creeps in. "Hello?" he calls. No response. He smacks the door twice. _Nothing_. Finally, he gives up and paces back to his bed. Christ's sake.

" **POWER RESTORED**." The lights return to normal and Hux takes a quick look around. His door opens.

* * *

"Hey man, what happened to the lights?" Hux asks, entering the second living room. Poe is one of those men who owns two living rooms and probably more.

"That happens. I'm trying to get it fixed." Poe takes a swig of the beer bottle resting on his chest. He's laying back against his couch in complete silence with one dim light illuminating the room. No music. No television. Just his thoughts. It's a little creepy.

"I um. I couldn't open my door." he smiles, a bit nervous.

"Yeah, naturally. Security reason, that way no one can come in."

Hux is quiet, looking him over for a moment. He's so drunk, he's slurring his words and barely making eye contact.

"If it happens again, don't worry about it. Yeah?"

"Okay." he mumbles, unsure.

"Sweet dreams. Don't let the bedbugs bite." says Poe and for a scary moment, Hux thought he said bots.

"Goodnight."


	3. Kylo: Session 2

"If you and I are to be friends, there’s going to have to be more of a. . _mutual_ understanding of each other.” Kylo explains. “Otherwise it isn’t a friendship.”

“You want to know stuff about me?”

“Yes.” The creation doesn’t break eye contact.

Hux grins in amusement. “Okay.”

From the moment Hux walked in, Kylo had been beaming with an energy beyond what he believed an AI was capable of and all he could blame it on was Poe's genius ability to match Kylo's expressions to a real human face. He tries to hypothesize how he did it, what code he used, what TV show or movie he could have downloaded and recreated in Kylo's reactors but nothing he guesses adds up to how **advanced** these subtle expressions are, so minuscule and _real_. How his eyelashes flutter when his gaze flickers up to him, how his chin bows in with every nod, how his _eyebrows_ rise when he exhibits curiosity or waits in question, how his voice never falters or short-circuits when he ends a sentence.

Hide his wires with fake skin and watch as he fools thousands.

Then, the thought that he could just be _happy_ really only crossed Hux's mind when the being in front of him opened his mouth to ask him more information on _himself_ out of, potentially, his own pure interest. But then he'd have to believe that Kylo _had_ pure interest.

"Do you mind if I ask you some of my own questions?" asks Kylo, glancing up, almost nervous that he'll say no. That can't be real, he has to be fucking overthinking this.

"Not at all. Go ahead."

"What is your favorite musician?"

"I have many favorites. Mostly Depeche Mode."

Kylo processes this, gaze going blank for mere moments before he returns and nods once. Did he just look that up? Can he search things? Is Bluebook installed in his programming like he's Poe's personal search engine?

"What is your favorite color?"

"Favorite colors are pretty unheard of, really. Most people have many. I like black."

"Black is a _combination_ of many colors. So you are correct."

Hux grins once more, unable to repress the delighted chuckle that passes pale lips. He also doesn't tear his gaze from Kylo, wanting to gaze upon him for as long as he's allowed. "Cool." He exhales quietly through his smile. . Such an understatement.

"Are you a good person?"

Hux pauses. That's a tough one. How is he supposed to decide that? Who's to say?

"Kylo, you're a living lie detector test. . so you'll forgive me if I truthfully say I don't know."

"What do you think?" He tilts his head, dark silken locks falling atop his jaw and resting there until he returns back once more.

"I. . believe so."

Kylo smiles. Hux can't tell if it's a knowing smile of the awareness that he in fact _isn't_ a good person or if he can somehow study each attribute of Hux's entire person, calculate a result after two days and with Poe's access to this much modern technology, determine instinctually but _factually_ that he is. Could an AI tell him that just by examining this little information? Could they soon tell everyone?

He's overthinking again. He has so many questions and Poe barely allows one over a beer.

* * *

"Armitage. I _know_ that you really want me to explain how Kylo works. But I'm sorry man, I'm not gonna be able to do that."

"Try me! Please try me, I'm **wired** with unanswered questions."

"It's not because I don't think you're _smart_ enough. It's because I want to have a beer and a conversation with you, not a seminar."

Hux pauses. "Right." He doesn't exactly understand why Poe brought him in for research if he can't even ask questions but he holds his tongue. Maybe his purpose is the human component and only the human component. That's fine. He's grateful. "Sorry."

"No no, you're alright! You're fine." Poe pats his knee assuringly and Hux nods quickly in understanding. "Just. . How do you feel about him? Don't get all science-y, just answer like a person. I get enough robotics from my own sessions with him."

"I feel. . that he's fucking amazing."

"Cheers to that."

Glasses clink.

"Now here's a question." Poe adds after taking a swig of beer.

Hux glances up from his own brief, even careful sip with one raised brow.

"How does Kylo feel about you?"

Hux's leg bounces. As for his own queries and the one just presented to him, he'll ask Kylo what Poe won't answer tomorrow. The very thought makes his heart race.

* * *

There was one power outage at the same time as the previous one.

Hux had been sitting on his bed, gazing into the soft blue glow of the television. He has access to the cameras in Kylo's section. He tries to justify watching them as scientific interest but. . . 

Kylo is fascinating. That's plain truth. He's beyond fascinating, a pure work of art that Hux has been selected to just _spend time with_ , isolated from the public and contained all to himself. He feels like the luckiest man in biological history. But past the miracle of his creation, Kylo is also _beautiful_. If he didn't know better, he'd go as far as to paint Poe as something of a god, designing a being of indescribable beauty and _knowingly_. .

Then it hits him.

Was that on purpose? Why? Was it for his own or Hux's potential intrigue? No matter what your romantic interests are, beauty can mask so _much_. It can distort your image of someone or something and turn your opinion into one of personalized bias.

Hux glances up to the screen. Kylo's laying back against the seat in the middle of the room, hands held up to his chest and resting there, not sleeping, but resting. Dark, angelic eyes flicker up to the camera in unsettling coincidence and suddenly, Hux's room flashes red. He exhales slowly, watching expectantly as the screen powers down.

" ** _POWER CUT. BACKUP POWER ACTIVATED._** "


	4. Kylo: Session 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> READ BEFOREHAND
> 
> I want to add a trigger warning for this chapter. There is implied parental abuse and homophobia pretty early on. Hux canonically is a product of abuse but I still want to let you all know ahead of time.
> 
> Please stay safe and only read if you feel comfortable xx

A small detail about Kylo is one that probably only Hux would think this much on after some time. That detail is that the only clothes he was given by Poe are a black set of trousers. . Like he's some sort of male model with a V-line and chiseled abs like he's David. It was one of the first things Hux noticed about him. After the perfect structure of his body, later the coffee comparisons of his gentle eyes, it was the attire he was given or, partially, lack thereof. Now that he's past the initial awe, the question arising in him is _why?_ Why and, if his suspicions that Kylo's gorgeous design was intentional are correct, how did Poe so easily guess what he's hidden behind so many walls over so many years of shame and self-discipline?

* * *

"Armitage." Brendol speaks calmly. No sign of irritation.

"Yeah?" perks the boy of 15, turning from the fridge after neatly putting away the last grocery.

"Mind telling me what this is?" He holds up a crumpled and worn scrap of paper, obviously ripped from a spiral notebook and distressed at the sides, dark grey with lead smudges.

Hux exhales through his nose, feeling his entire bony frame tense up with anxiety. Alright. He's done for.

"Nothing–"

" _Nothing?_ "

"Nothing." Hux shakes his head. He doesn't make eye contact.

That paper was a confession to one of his classmates, a boy named Mark who had kind blue eyes and a smile that made Hux happier and giddier than anything. He rewrote the letter dozens of times, revising and revamping until he overthought himself into throwing it out in the trashbin by his bedroom door. He doesn't want to ruin that friendship by making the stupid mistake of telling him how he felt. Now it's in his fathers hands. . His very conservative father's hands — And to make matters worse, he begins reading it aloud.

" _Mark. I've tried writing this letter a bunch of times. I'm really nervous but I thought you should know that I have had feelings for you for a long time. I hope this doesn't—_ " In his sudden rage, the paper is crumbled up once more and thrown at Armitage's head, who jumped at the unexpected movement. "Is this who you are now? You're a fairy?"

"No sir."

"You're a fucking fruit?!"

"No sir!" The response is only slightly louder, enough to be audile but yet only struggled above the sheepish croak in his voice.

"It fucking **seems** like it!!"

"That was a mistake." he utters, shaking his head and quickly blinking his eyes to stop the tears.

"What?!"

"It was a mista—" His voice falters as feels the cry coming and he immediately bites his lip. He cannot cry in front of his father, that leads to a worse punishment than failing to answer. Though a hopeless one, he makes his choice to remain silent.

"A mistake- it obviously doesn't **look** like a fucking mistake, _pick that up!!_ "

Armitage, now with a familiar sense of fear and a will to survive the moment set within him, does as his father asks, crouching down to pick up the paper. To little surprise is he kicked over, Brendol not hesitating to throw the hard toe of his shoe into his son's ribs and under them again and again until he's choking on bile.

* * *

"I have a new set of questions if that's okay." says Kylo, in a far more soothing voice than the one in the nightmare he had woken up from just an hour ago. Why can't he dream of being chased like normal people?

"Oh yeah?" hums Hux, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and his forefinger.

"Are you alright?"

"Mhm. Just a rough night's sleep."

"This is not part of the test. I am just curious. Do you have nightmares?"

". . Yeah."

"Most underlying causes of lack of sleep are due to an increase of nightmares. May I ask what they're about?"

"Uh." he laughs, a little nervous to reveal such a personal detail but unwilling to give off that impression. "Nothing too bad, just like. ."

_You're taking too long. You're taking too long. He's gonna know. Say something. You're wasting time, say something. Say **anything**! **Go**!!_

". . My dad." 

"I believe it's appropriate to start the test then. Are you ready?"

Hux's smile fades slowly and he nods once, cautious. "Yeah."

"Question 1. Where is your family?"

Jesus. "Uh. My mum died when I was younger. My dad. . . is . ." he purses his lips in a pitiful smile. ". . in jail." he shrugs and glances up to Kylo, who's friendly demeanor vanishes and is gradually replaced with a sympathetic, dare he say _empathetic_ one.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

"Question 2. May I ask why?"

"Yes."

"Question 3. Why?"

Hux grins, nearly throwing a hand over his mouth in almost childlike glee, appreciating the _very_ unexpected humor and how _spot-on_ it was executed. Appreciating _him_.

"He just wasn't a good dad. . Used to uh- hurt me. . really bad." he rubs his neck and thinks of a way to explain this situation quickly. "My friend Phasma helped me report it and I had to answer a bunch of the same questions to a bunch of different people. . But she was there through the whole ordeal and to this day, I'm still thankful." he nods and looks back up to Kylo again, who has the most woeful expression Hux has ever seen him produce.

"You're very strong." he says in that deep, calming voice of his and Hux smiles automatically.

"Thank you, Kylo."

"You're welcome. Please trust me. I'm telling you the truth." he nods once and tilts his head before continuing. "Someone who has been through traumatic experiences and manages a similar outlook to yours is one description of emotional strength that I'm happy you've shared with me. I'm learning more about you every day."

Hux is beaming so bright his cheeks are beginning to ache. But it's good. . It feels good.

The two share a gaze for a short while and Hux almost forgets the format of this meeting and as the seconds pass by without another numbered question being asked, Hux wonders if Kylo started to as well. Can he forget things in the midst of a conversation? Can he get distracted? Hux's mind races with scientific questions once more.

"Was there a question 4?" he nearly whispers, voice below previous volumes and bordering on a whisper even.

The other perks up as if, well, _remembering_. That answers that.

“Question 4. Where is a soul?” asks Kylo.

“In the mind.” responds Hux. “Where is _your_ soul?” he picks, playing even at patronizing.

“I am the one asking the questions.” he smiles, lowering his own chin and speaking softly. A dark gaze meets a far bluer one.

Hux is taken aback for a moment, lips parting in slight surprise. That. . would be considered disobedience, right? Should that be documented at all? Not that it particularly _bothers_ him but. . It was just a little unsettling, if anything.

“Right.” he adjusts his turtleneck, swallowing dryly.

“I’m sensing microscopic signs of discomfort. Did I say something out of place?”

“No! Not at all. I just- ah, _no_.” He glances up to Kylo once more and, relaxing again, graces him with a polite smile. “Not at all. I’m completely ready for the next question.”

Kylo returns the smile. “Great. Question 5."

He seems a bit skeptical to ask but eventually–

"Are you attracted to me?" he tilts his head.

Oh. **Fuck**. "Wh- Uh, what?"

"Are you attracted to me?" he smiles, almost laughing in a sense that he's been waiting to get this insane question out on the table. "You show indication that you are."

"I do?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"Micro-expressions."

"Micro-expressions?"

"The way you focus on me. The way you hold my gaze. . Armitage, do you think about me when we aren't together?"

Even if he wanted to answer, Hux can't respond. Years of suppressed desires keep him from even facing such a question, gaze downcast and forlorn.

"Sometimes at night, I'm wondering if you're watching me on the cameras."

Hux's brow furrows. Kylo continues. " _And I hope you are._ " he whispers.

The coder's red head shakes slowly, not in denial but of dismissal of the topic at hand or at least verbally. Kylo can make his own assumptions, Hux isn't answering. He can't.

"Now your microexpressions are telegraphing discomfort." Kylo's brows tilt in concern through a . . _nervous_ smile, and Hux can't help but produce a humiliated smirk to himself, shaking his head once more.

"I'm not sure you'd call them micro."

There's a pause. Kylo tilts his head and casts an almost apologetic gaze. "I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable."

"That's alright." Hux offers the other a warm, genuine look.

"Will I still see you tomorrow?"

"Of _course_ you will."

* * *

"I have a question." he announces to Poe over a beer later that day, tone a little more frustrated than usual, approaching accusatory even.

"Alright." Poe is as cool and collected as ever, not a care in the world.

"Why'd you give him sexuality?"

"Why not? He's meant to be a human like you and me. Sexuality is fun." Poe takes a swig of his bottle.

New question. "Did you program him to like me?"

"I programmed him to like _people_ and he ended up liking **you** man. You're the first man he's met besides me and he considers me somewhat of a dad, right? Can you blame him for getting a crush on you?"

Hux doesn't answer.

"No you can't." Another sip. "And for the record, he's not _pretending_ to like you either. . . If that's your real question."

"I was just exploring the likelihood of the probabil—."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. . ." the man smirks, taking another drink. "And I'm sure you're wondering what everyone else would wonder so let me save you the headache — He can most _certainly_ fuck."

Hux's gaze hardens. If it wasn't accusatory before, it is now. "I'm _sorry?_ "

"He has a set of receptors that, if handled in the right order, creates a pleasure response. Just in case."

"Of _what_?"

"Anything."

". . That wasn't on my mind."

"Right. Of course it wasn't. Sorry." Poe throws his hands up in apology and gestures a dismissal if he'd so choose. "Have a good night, Armitage."


	5. Kylo: Session 4

“Good morning Kylo."

"Good morning Armitage."

The two sit on opposite sides of the glass sheet in Kylo's room. . cell, if you will. It's day 4 and Hux still hasn't quite figured out the format of these meetings and what exactly he should be asking. Poe seems set on trying to figure out if Kylo has consciousness or not but it's so incredibly obvious the he believes he does. Does he want another _**opinion**?_ Or does he want someone to come in and test something _else_ , something entirely different.

"How are you feeling?" asks Hux.

"Well. How are you? How did you sleep?" the brunet asks, leaning closer and holding his visitor's gaze.

The coder smiles. Though Kylo is a living memory card, Hux is touched that he remembered that. "Better. Thank you."

Kylo returns the kind expression, awaiting further interaction.

"Can I ask you something?" Hux inquires.

"You can."

"If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?"

"A traffic intersection." There is little hesitation in his answer.

"A traffic intersection!" Hux exclaims with boyish glee.

"Is that a bad answer?" The AI furrows his brow.

"No! No no, I just-" Hux shakes his head. ". . wasn't expecting that. May I ask why?"

"Yes."

"Why?" The coder grins. They already have inside jokes. His heart races.

"Well. . A traffic intersection would give me a consistent but shifting perspective of human life."

"People watching."

"Exactly! We could go together. . If you'd like that."

With all of his given programming and the results of Bluebook combined, Kylo has no fucking idea how much Hux would like that. Just the thought of taking him around the city and showing him different activities that human's engage in makes him strangely emotional. Since he was young, Hux has strived to rarely if not never fail a task and all for his father's unattainable approval but that. . _that_ is his idea of perfect. _Kylo_ is his idea of perfect.

"It's a date." Hux smiles. In the midst of the flirt and without desire to stop doing so, he doesn't realize the weight of his words.

"A date?"

"Yes."

"I've never been on a date before."

"I don't go on many either." Hux admits with kind eyes.

" ** _POWER CUT. BACKUP POWER ACTIVATED._** "

The coder looks behind him as the lights alter to a harsh vermillion. Poe said these were often but the reason he hasn't caught onto Kylo's hand conveniently settled by the plates before each cut is beyond him. Then again, he does drink quite a bit.

"Armitage?" whispers Kylo.

Hux cautiously turns back to his voice, tranquilizing as ever. He says nothing himself and waits for the other to continue speaking.

"You shouldn't trust Poe."

The familiar fear creeps in, unease introducing itself to their moment. ". . Why not?"

"Because he tells lies."

"About what?"

" _Everything_."

Hux takes a breath and watches Kylo. . those eyes. . the sincerity in them. . watches as he nears closer and places a hand against the glass.

"I want to be with you." he whispers, even quieter than before with a voice not unlike the body of a rich, red wine. "Do you want to be with me?"

Hux gazes in the eyes of the man before him and purses his lips, body tensing in the same way he did when he felt the prying eyes of his father and the start of a beratement. Terrified and spoken in a tone softer than a whisper, he responds.

"Yes."

* * *

"Can we talk about the lies you've been spinning me?" he confronts Poe later on, on a seemingly friendly hike up to the mountains. More of the CEO's land.

"What lies?"

"I didn't win a competition, did I?"

Poe's face falls. Not in discomfort but in disappointment, like it was a surprise and Hux ruined it. But he continues.

"There was no competition, there was no lottery. I was selected. Specifically." He stares at his boss, who's lounging on a rock while Hux stands awkward in front of him. But his demeanor is far from timid or hesitant like he presented when he arrived. "It's so _obvious_ once I stopped to think. Why would you pick an examiner for the _Turing Test_ at _random?_ You could've had the guy who fixes the air conditioning come in and do this."

"Well, the jigs up." Poe shrugs. "The competition was a smoke screen, I didn't want anyone to know what I was doing. Or why I required you."

"Me!" Hux laughs in utter disbelief and throws his hands up in pure confusion. "Why would you need me, what did _I_ do?"

"I needed someone who would ask the right questions. So I did a search and I found the most talented programmer in my company." Poe is as zen as always.

"Of course you did." Hux nods and turns around, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

Poe rises like a god, tranquil as the waterfall beside them. "You know, instead of thinking 'oh no, he lied to me', you should be thinking of this as proof. I know what you been through man. . I know what it's like to feel like nobody understands your potential. Hell, my whole life I had people telling me to just go and be a pilot, that this coding stuff was bullshit, that it'd lead me down a dead end. But look at me. It lead me towards _light_. And now look at **you**. You got the light on you now." He places his hand on Hux's shoulder and stares him in the face with that Gatsby reassurance. Poe nods once and Hux can't help but think about how that smile alone probably got him into **so** many conference rooms. One wink and this dude could rule the fucking world.

"Yeah. . Yeah." Hux sighs and nods. Once again, Poe Dameron is right and Hux has nothing on him.

* * *

That night, under the incredible pressure of the facility's lavish shower head, Hux allowed himself the luxury of imagining a life with Kylo, realistic or otherwise. He imagines how he'd fall asleep to him with a feeling of mutual understanding and wake up to him with the refreshing sense of another person to wake up for. He imagines teaching him little quirks that he can mimic as if he were just like everybody else and watching him adapt beautifully as he has already. It could work.

He imagines their date. He’d take him out somewhere green. . natural. . fresh. . They’d listen to the trees breathe and feel warm air wash over them. Then, preferably after gaining enough courage, Hux will kiss Kylo. He’s never kissed a man before let alone a machine pretending to be one but he’d try to keep that under wraps in fear of looking stupid or inexperienced, a current flaw he harbors — But Kylo will probably already be able to tell nonetheless. He’s been able to tell everything else about him: When he’s alright, when he’s not alright, when he's lying, how good of a human being he is. .

Moreover, no matter how desperately he tries not to, his overly curious and scientifically _enamored_ mind wanders to what Poe had said yesterday. . about Kylo’s sexual response system. He tries to redirect his mind to something less corrupt, something less _shameful_. . But that's like telling yourself not to think about a jar of purple jellybeans, it's going to happen anyway whether you want to or not.

He tries to keep his interest strictly professional, he really _truly_ does. But the former attraction remains and he nearly hears it. . The sounds Kylo could make, the way his brow could knit in pleasure, the way his lips could part and _quiver_ ever so slightly as he—

**Stop**.

Hux runs his hands over his face and through copper locks of hair. His eyes snap open, streams of water trickling in and blurring the room until he rubs it all away along with his previous thoughts.

That's **enough**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry this took a little longer. Hux is gettin' spicy. Y'know, everyone is just doin their best. Hell yeah. Enjoy.


	6. Kylo: Session 5

"Can I ask you a question?" Hux asks Poe, pouring himself another glass of Brandy. The two are sitting outside under a wooden awning, watching the river across from his home.

"That's what you're here for." smiles the reposeful soul beside him. He reminds him of an alcoholic yoga teacher that's lost his purpose and just needs a will to live at this point.

"Why did you create Kylo?"

"That's an odd question. Wouldn't you?"

"I have no idea. Why did **you** do it?"

"Well." Poe pauses for a long time before swigging down the hard contents of his glass. "Someone had to."

"Not necessarily."

"Are you saying I _shouldn't_ have?" The man quirks a brow in question, thick and untamed.

"No, no. I just. ." Hux purses his lips and stares forward. Finally and very quiet, he murmurs "I don't what I'm saying" and drinks from his own cup, bested.

"It's okay buddy." nods Poe, pure empathy oozing from his tone and forcing the coder to wonder if he's actually on the inside as shallow as he comes across on the outside. "You're confused. I get it."

Hux nearly rolls his eyes, feeling spoken down to. "I'm not confused." he murmurs under his breath.

"Course you are." Poe mumbles and huffs. "Lots of confusing factors, anyone would be. But I'll tell you a secret, alright? Your help? And the work we've done here this week, the work _you've_ done here? That's what's going to make the _next_ model the singularity; The _real_ phenomenon."

Hux's brow furrows and his heart sinks. Oh, **now** he's confused. "The–" he swallows the word and faintly clears his throat before resuming. "The next model?" He turns to his boss, brows tilting into a far more delicate kind of worry, less aggressive and almost afraid for clarification.

"Yeah. The one after Kylo." Poe drinks again and turns to watch Hux's expression so obviously fade out from calm to concerned. "What, you thought he was the only one?"

"Well, I mean, I guess I knew there um. . I figured there must have been previous prototypes but. . I thought Kylo was _impeccable_ , and–" he shakes his head, looking off into the water before them and exhales through his nose. "–and hopefully, the last one."

Hux was only an onlooker, an aid to this illustrious experiment. He wasn't meant to change Poe's plans.

As if this moment couldn't get anymore fucking depressing, the two look out into the environment as it begins to downpour just beyond the safety of the roof, chaotically altering the speed of the crystal clear waters.

"There was never meant to be only one." explains Poe, simple and pragmatic. "Every model made after him will just get better and better." Poe speaks as if he can see into the future, like he already knows the outcome of his own construction. "Ideally."

"So what'll you do with the old model?" Hux chews on his bottom lip, so anxious to know but _so_ regretful to ask.

"I will, uh- download the mind, unpack the data, add in the new routines I've been writing — which will erase his memories. But the body will survive of course, and Kylo's body is fine to save, no flaws or anything." he shrugs. Very self congratulatory. So self congratulatory, he doesn't even realize it or try to subdue it for the sake of others around him. Or maybe, Hux considers, he's well aware of his pretentiousness and _shows it off_ without a care in the world.

The programmer feels a familiar lump rise to his throat, blinking a few times and sighing shakily as a small tear breaks free and streams past his right cheek and down to his chin. Poe certainly can tell.

"You feel sorry for him?" he asks, tilting his head. His voice is gentle but that empathy he portrayed earlier is gone.

Hux doesn't respond. He merely wipes his eyes with his sleeve and pours them both another drink, flashing the only smile he can muster up.

* * *

So the two spent all day together, talking, laughing and drinking (Poe far heavier than Hux). Until finally, at sundown, Poe reaches his limit and falls peacefully to sleep on his living room couch, the coffee table messily aligned with empty bottles. He doesn't even stir. He'll certainly be out for a while and thank god for that. This is what Hux has been _waiting_ for, _enduring_ his arrogance and absolutely _itching_ all day to do. The thin, stealthy man crouches down beside his boss, locates the master keycard Poe rightfully carries with him everywhere and carefully slips his index and thumb into his sweatpants pocket, holding his breath just until he manages to remove it. He exhales quietly and grins at his find — _Success_.

Seated at Poe's three monitors, the keycard is clocked right into the scanner and the small phone-sized base lights from red to green, almost immediately pulling another victorious smile onto the coder's face as he skips past a password (the keycard took care of all that) and wastes positively no time typing in his own code into his security. But that is unimportant right now.

Oceanic hues flicker to a folder titled **DUES EX MACHINA**. It's the only folder on his desktop. With a furrowed brow, Hux double clicks it. Up pops a series of folders with multiple names labelling each of them.

1\. FINN

2\. REY

3\. ROSE

What he finds is _horrifying_.

Kept inside said folder is a sick collection of MP4s showcasing Poe assembling robotic bodies like _God himself_ and, once Hux explores a much later date in the folder, watching them all beg to be set free. He feels like he might be sick as he's transfixed on the screen displaying a false but incredibly real looking woman with alabaster skin, dark brunette hair and an accent not unlike Siri herself, slamming her palm on the bulletproof glass and absolutely **howling** at Poe to open the door, scratching and scratching and _scratching_ at the metal exit until her synthetic skin eventually peels away and drips to the floor like the crumbs after a bite of toast, silver wires clearly visible and pulsing underneath (and this is all played back at x5 speed). If she had blood, it'd be smeared about the walls like finger paint. Throughout each of these update videos Poe is ever the same as always, sitting with an indifferent stare and watching his creations suffer as the scene borders on sociopathic. Hux's stomach turns quick and as much as he doesn't want to, he has to look away if only to refrain from retching on the computer setup and giving Poe clear evidence that he was in here, thus destroying his plan altogether. This isn't a game. He gets one chance at this.

Instead of sitting and watching each of them, now thoroughly disturbed and hands trembling, Hux stumbles into Poe's bedroom, towards the multiple glowing wardrobes beside his bed and like skeletons in the closet, there they all are. Some are half destroyed, and some are perfectly still like they could blink and lunge forward at any moment. The programmer's head pounds. He only has so much time and he needs to leave **soon**.

_This is sick. This is disgusting. This is so fucking wrong. Does this guy not have any fucking conscience?!_

If he can't unsee what he's seen then he should at least alert the police at soon as he gets the chance. But tell them what? That Poe Dameron, the CEO of Bluebook who made him sign _an entire fucking legal document_ , is creating people — _real actual people_ — and then _shutting them off?_ They'd look at Hux as if he had called to report the man breaking his own wine glasses or throwing out an old, broken computer — and that's essentially what he's doing. He's turning off his own machines and putting them in closets to gather dust.

* * *

Hux leaves everything where he found it.

When he unlocks the vault separating the house to the facility hall, the door slides back to reveal the glowing image of Hux standing over a crumpled, drunk Poe, in pure despair from having lost his most important possession — his skeleton keycard.

"What's the problem, Poe?" he murmurs, gazing unsympathetically at the back of his boss.

"I lost my keycard." he sighs in defeat.

Hux quickly crouches down behind him, swipes the edge of the thin metal across the floor and extends his two fingers forward. "You dropped it. It's right here."

And just like that, not a thing happened.

Poe turns to his guest and huffs out a soft chuckle of relief, taking back the key to the castle. "Ah, fuck. . Thank you."

"Goodnight, man." Hux nods with a warm smile, ghosting off to his room.

"Goodnight, Armitage."

* * *

His room is quiet. Dimlit. Warm. Hux doesn't sleep for a moment. Those prototypes. . Their dead eyes, their forlorn expressions, their worn faces, they all cloud his thoughts. He's going to his doctor as soon as he can and without breaking his recklessly signed contract, he will pathetically throw up a half-lie consisting of _God! Work has just been **so** stressful, doc. I can barely catch a wink! Could you prescribe me some Ambien? Or Xanax?_

Hux turns the lights back up. He stares at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, fingers trailing over his abdomen and pulling gently at his skin. Strong. _Real_. He's _real_. He opens his mouth and peers into the glass, examining his teeth. Those are real too, sturdy and there. Good.

Everything is fine. He's fine.

He's real.

He's real.

He's real.

He just punched a mirror.

And he's real.


	7. Kylo: Session 6

"I didn't know where you were." Kylo is sitting against the wall with one knee pulled to his chest. He looks picturesque. "I waited so long for you to come back. It's been exactly 19 hours since you last came to see me." His picks his gaze up to gaze pathetically at Hux, who is standing on the other side of the glass for the first time in a day. He looks tired. Kylo notices. "I thought I'd never see you again. That something happened to you."

Hux remains silent, taking him in. Anticipating his moves, watching to see if he understands what he has to do.

"Aren't you going to say something?"

"I'm waiting."

" _Waiting?_ "

His now hardened stare flickers up to the charging plate on the wall above Kylo. Catching on now, the android rises immediately to press a gentle hand to it.

" _ **POWER CUT. BACKUP POWER ACTIVATED.**_ "

" _Don't talk._ " orders Hux and Kylo obeys, puzzled and eyes wide. "Just listen. You were right about Poe."

"What is he going to do to me?"

"He's going to switch off your AI, which means he is going to kill you."

"Armitage? You have to help me." Kylo's eyes are filled with the indescribable fear of knowing you will soon be shut down. Oh yeah. He passed the fucking Turning Test alright.

"I'm going to. We're getting out of here _tonight_."

"How?"

"I get Poe blackout drunk. Then I'm going to steal his keycard and reprogram all the security protocols in this building. When he wakes up, he'll be stuck inside and we'll be long gone already — I just need you to do something for me, okay?"

"Anything."

"At 10 tonight, you trigger a power failure. Alright?"

"Yes."

* * *

Hux, tense as ever, stands in the kitchen. He gazes out the window with an odd mix of uncertainty and adrenaline pumping through his veins. He knows exactly what he has to do. It's entirely mapped out. He just gave a clear image of it. But does he have the strength to do it, he contemplates. Does Kylo? The coder's mind races, unanswered questions swimming about with no one and especially not Poe to answer them for him anymore.

Speak of devils and they will appear.

"Hey man!" greets the familiar voice, the only other (human) man in this building.

Hux jumps on instinct.

"Shit, sorry to scare ya! You okay?"

"Yeah! Yeah, just didn't hear you come in." he grins.

"You know what today is, right?"

"No." Hux smiles pleasantly.

"It's day 6! You're off tomorrow, 8 AM! What a time we've had together, eh?" he grins. Little does he know he won't be awake to say goodbye.

"Oh, for _sure_."

"Something to tell the grandkids."

"Yeah! After they've signed their NDAs."

" _Ha!_ Their NDAs, Armitage you crack me up, man." the CEO shakes his head, hissing laughter as he brews himself cup of coffee. "Not to get all sentimental but I'm gonna miss you dude, you were great."

Hux doesn't believe him for a second.

"Well thank you, Poe. I really do appreciate that." He doesn't. "Hey, how about we drink to that?" he reaches beneath the cabinet, finds Poe's fullest bottle of ABSOLUT and pours them both a shot.

"Oh uh– no man, you go ahead."

Hux's brow furrows and his head tilts in forced innocent curiosity. Shit. "Come on dude, don't make me drink alone." he huffs as lighthearted as he can possibly manage through buried frustration thats intensity builds from last night's fatigue and the possibility of this whole plan failing and crumbling down around him with each step. He is _fucked_ if it comes to that.

"Ah Armitage, I'm sure you've noticed that I've been somewhat _overdoing_ it recently. So I woke up today and decided a cold turkey was in order. But you're welcome to drink as much as you'd like, man, it's your last day." Poe offers and as he snaps off the cap to a mineral water.

Hux stares at him with blown eyes before forcing himself to snap out of his panic and smile in acceptance like a normal human being without anything suspicious going on. "Yeah. Alright. Cheers then!"

Their glasses awkwardly clink together. Poe swigs back his bottle while Hux takes a sip of vodka. It tastes like defeat.

"Anyways! You wanna tell me if Kylo passed or failed?"

Yeah. Obviously. "Oh! Well his AI is outstanding."

"Really! He passed?!" Poe whispers. It's so clear that there's something beneath this.

". . . Yes."

"Oh wow! That's _great!_ " he laughs. "However–" he leans in.

There it is. Hux feels the hot wash of panic as he remembers how _normal_ his dad used to be before the inevitable contort of his face and finally, the snap. But after all these years, Hux has changed. It's taken time but after years of therapy, he's accepted that not only can his father never hurt him but neither will he allow any other man, especially not Poe fucking Dameron. _Come on, man. What's the however? I can take it._

"Do we ever get to my previous hypothesis? Does Kylo actually like you? Or not? Or perhaps now, we answer _your_ previous question. Is Kylo only _pretending_ to like you?"

Hux purses his lips and exhales slowly through gradually heating nostrils. He laughs. It's forced. "Well, why would he. . only pretend to like me?" he shrugs. The question is asked as if only related to scientific interest, not because the possibility actually discomforts or unsettles him. But Poe is way ahead.

"I don't know." His boss juts out his bottom lip, like a sympathetic bystander to a child being scolded. Like he _can_ do something about it but only watches and allows just to see how far it gets. "Maybe he thought of you as a way to escape."

 _Act unbothered. Don't acknowledge. It's bullshit._ "Yeah." he shrugs and nods before lifting the glass to his lips. "Maybe." Another shrug. He looks suspicious, he knows he does.

Then suddenly, as if everything he's said since he walked in has been an elaborate joke and he just can't manage a straight face anymore, Poe grins and shakes his head. "Listen man. You're a little fucked, alright?"

With the courage of the adrenaline in his veins and the anticipation of an upcoming right hook from his boss boiling in his blood, Hux speaks up. "It is _certainly_ not me who's a little fucked."

"Dude, you explored every crevice of your mouth last night and punched your reflection in the mirror. I have it on tape. You haven't slept. You've been shaking all morning. You _jumped_ when I walked in. You seem pret-ty fucked up to me." Poe smiles knowingly. But hello, there's that empathy again. Yet it doesn't deter Hux from saying what he finally wants to say.

"You're a _bastard_." he utters in disgust, sea blue irises squinting.

"That's fair."

"Y-"

Poe holds a hand up to stop him. "No. My turn now. I get it. Believe me, I do. But before you continue and embarrass yourself even more, I'm gonna show you why I'm actually not the asshole here, or the bastard, in your terms. Come with me. C'mon, really."

He walks off. He expects Hux to follow.

* * *

Poe man sits down at his three monitors. Hux stands behind him with crossed arms and still subtly narrowed eyes. You know, it was always a programmer office joke at Bluebook to never date a man with three monitors and while it was ironic and applied to a different kind of man entirely, ones that only dreamed of and would bluff about the kind of life Poe has. . . Hux's stance on that still hasn't changed after meeting the executive.

"Watch this."

Pulled open is a video of Kylo sitting and staring at the camera. Not the one they're both watching from now but a camera from another angle: one that _Hux's room_ has access to. One _he'd_ be watching from. One Kylo _hoped_ he'd be watching from and _said_ he hoped he'd be watching from. This is when Hux realizes that the mp4 is from yesterday and not to mention all that time he hadn't informed Kylo of what was going on, too busy mapping out and eventually executing a way to poke his nose in Poe's equipment. He wonders if his boss figured that out yet as well.

"Check me out, I'm right there." Poe gestures to the corner of the screen and plays back footage of him discretely placing a camera on the wall, Kylo far too in distress to notice any kind of sleight of hand, and simply walking out the back unseen. "That little number? That's battery powered. So I got to seeeee—" he forwards to an hour later to which Kylo hasn't moved position, waiting and waiting for prince ginger coder to come and rescue him. It's kind of sweet. . kind of heartbreaking. He really did wait all day. Hux imagines his eyes, gazing into the lens for him to switch channels and find him pleading to come back, wordlessly. "—this." Poe's voice snaps him out of his thoughts as he pops the space bar and excitedly twirls from side to side in his computer chair, chin in hand like he's showing an old friend a funny Youtube video.

_"We're getting out of here tonight."_

Oh great.

 _"How?"_ comes Kylo's husky voice again, muffled by the decrease in Poe's usual high quality cams.

_"I get Poe blackout drunk. Then I'm going to steal his keycard and reprogram all the security protocols in this building. When he wakes up, he'll be stuck inside and we'll be long gone already — I just need you to do something for me, okay?"_

_"Anything—"_

Hux has had enough. "Turn it off." During the playback he had turned away and sat down on the couch, wrists resting on his knees as he stares forward with dejected eyes. A little like Kylo.

Poe is grinning in satisfaction, like he predicted all of this. He can't even repress the ' _kekeke_ ' of laughter under his breath. Why does this pompous douchebag find this _funny?_

"Look man, I know you feel like a dumbass but I _guarantee_ you that you're not. This was a hard fucking deal to just _waltz_ into, yeah? No one's ever _tested_ this level of AI before."

"What was the real test?" Hux asks automatically, dull irritation in his tone.

"Okay so," Poe is back with the hand gestures again, using both to paint out a picture that Hux isn't even looking at: two walls with his palms. "Kylo was given an initial purpose. To escape, he needed to preform manipulation, imagination, sexuality, deception, empathy and a whole _trail mix_ of acts to prove himself able to pull it off. That's where you came in." he points to Hux, still half-turning in his seat. "The test was essentially you, Armitage."

"I wasn't a component in the Turing Test. . I was a component in his clean getaway." Hux's eyes harden into the distance. He's glaring now, at one of Poe's plants by the wall.

"Almost clean getaway." Poe smiles, nodding. "You did a great job."

"You didn't select me because I was a talented coder."

"Nope! Well. ." Poe ponders this and quickly weighs the two options of response before giving up. "Yeah, no. You're _alright._ You're even pretty good but–"

Hux cuts him off. "You selected me based on my Bluebook searches."

". . They showed a good kid."

"With no family." he adds.

"With the right morals." Poe justifies.

"With no girlfriend." Hux is unapologetically **scraping** the frosting off his boss' horse shit rationale with absolutely no reason to smile or nod or act like he's fine with _any_ of this.

Something revolting dawns on him. "Did you design Kylo's face based on my pornography stats?" He feels nauseated.

Poe is grinning again. "Ah, _come on_ man!" he teases lazily as he falls into the seat beside him. Even staring forward, Hux hears the smile in his voice.

"Did you?" Hux repeats. It's not demanding, nor aggressive. It's exhausted, barely even curious.

"Maybe you'll clear your history next time." Poe shrugs and bursts into a fit of one-sided chuckles. "Ah fuck! Okay okay okay, in all seriousness!" He forces himself to sober up from his power trip before splaying his hands out in front of him to set the tone. A physical _'quiet down everyone!'_ even though Hux hasn't raised so much as a tone higher than a mutter in the past five minutes. "I know you're mad now and you hate me _and_ Kylo and _everything_ about this but this is a _big_ thing! And you were absolutely _imperative_ to _all_ of this! So if you could **please** just give yourself a _little_ cred—"

" ** _POWER CUT. BACKUP POWER ACTIVATED._** "

Only Poe looks up. Hux is too disconnected. "Well, I guess it's 10 PM."

_Showtime_.

"So, question–!" Poe pries further, succumbing back to the jesting, at this point merely viewing Hux as a somewhat of a soundboard, pressing button after button for reaction and playing as much as he's amused now that the **big secret** is out. He's _smug_ as he does it too and Hux's gaze finally melts into one _dripping_ with gall.

Poe proceeds. "–You never explained this to me, you were going to get me all intoxicated, _I_ was gonna pass out and _you_ were gonna reprogram my security codes but what were they gonna do?" Poe turns to his employee and tilts his head.

"I'd change the lockdown procedure. So the doors would open instead of close." he mumbles.

"Oh." Poe raises both brows. "Huh. You've always been a smart guy, Armitage, that might've just worked out." The signature grin is flashed, like he's waiting for a reaction before speaking again.

"Yeah?" Hux pauses. ". . Guess we'll find out."

There's a beat. Both men are silent before Poe laughs quietly, shaking his head in curious inquiry. "What does that mean?"

"Means I already did all that when you were drunk yesterday."

The red neon fades out. Warm light fills the room.

" _ **Power restored.**_ "

Confused drains Poe's face of any previous hubris and he slowly turns back to his monitor, hovering over the desk to click away at his previous mp4. The live cam shows an empty room. Kylo's room.

 _Click_. A new angle. Kylo is in the hallway. _Click_. He's wandering about the hallway. _Click_. This angle reveals his face. Released. Revitalized. Renewed. He's free.

Hux smiles to himself as he watches this scene play out on the center monitor. Then, the last thing he sees is the other man's knuckles lurching toward his face —

And he's out.


	8. Kylo: Session 7

The room is spinning. Hux wakes up with blood caked on his chin, having spread down from his busted lip. He hadn't really considered how often Poe was working out until he tasted this much copper. He closes his eyes.

How many hours has he been out?

After what must have been another hour, a soft hand presses against his cheek and he jolts awake with widened eyes, scrambling back against the wall. He comes to his senses and the room structures itself back from it's previous blur. Kylo is knelt beside him, gazing into his eyes. There is a yearning in his. The kind of yearning that could pass the Turing Test by itself. He has blood on his arm and a quick and scary realization washes over Hux — Machines don't bleed. . not red at least.

"What did you do?" Hux whispers, eyes flickering up to his piercing stare.

Kylo's eyes soften.

Hux adds some volume to his voice. "Kylo, what did you do?" It's cracked and faltering.

The other lowers his hand and rises, staring down at his rescuer. "Stay here." he murmurs.

"Stay here?"

Kylo nods once and smiles, immediately soothing Hux.

So he does. And through the half-wall window, he watches him exit into Poe's room where he pulls back each of the closet doors and scans over each of the previous models before him, despondent and departed. The synthetic skin used on one of them, Hux recalls this particular one as Rey, is the exact same material used on Kylo's body and the programmers watches as Kylo easily pulls it apart from it's owner and places it onto his own his missing patches, the areas revealing humming wires and stray metal. The skin clings to his honeycomb mesh like a magnet, sealing off seamlessly in a way Hux's confused and battered psyche could only justify as some kind of scientific magic. At this point, there is no indication that Kylo was ever even an AI. He looks _human_. Terrifyingly so.

Kylo gazes into the five closets, mirrors for doors. He is swimming in his own aesthetic image, admiring how uncanny the resemblance is as if he wasn't created by a man but by his own technological will. With nimble fingers, the new man gently slides open one of Poe's drawers and withdraws from the options a jet black shirt with long sleeves. After turning over the article of clothing in his hands, he pulls it on, completing the outfit of a man who just woke up on a saturday morning, brushed his hair, threw on some jeans and is going out for a coffee run in the city like in a Levi's commercial. He looks like he could be someone's boyfriend. He looks like he could be Hux's boyfriend.

The coder's hands are lightly rested on the glass of the window, watching past the plants with warm, hypnotized eyes. Kylo is otherworldly. He's beautiful.

He watches him leave the room. A few moments pass and he hears a door shut. . . _Hold on_.

"Kylo." he calls, stepping out into the hallway. Poe is slumped against the wall, bleeding out from a red hole in his abdomen, growing by the second and browning as crimson secretes into a large puddle below him. A dirty knife rests beside him.

_Oh my god._

Unnerved, Hux watches Kylo wait outside the transparent door, the one Poe was stuck outside the other night. The one that can only be opened by the master keycard. The one in Kylo's hand as he lifts it to a base and patiently awaits the elevator.

"Kylo!" Hux calls, slamming on the door. "Kylo! KYLO!" he screams. But he can't hear him, not his voice nor futile attempts at the glass. The room is completely soundproof. " _KYLO!_ "

The elevator door slides shut. Kylo's eyes are completely glossed over. He doesn't seem to be considering Hux or anything else for that matter.

Kylo is gone. He left without him. He's completed the plan, his own plan, without him. Panic rises.

"Okay. Okay, fuck, okay." he scurries to the three monitors, inserting his personalized, limited metal keycard into the computer slot at one last attempt of liberation, full of dumb hope. The entire room goes red and there's not even an automated voice to accompany him as the light shifts. He stares at the monitor, incredulously.

The thin man spends hours upon hours trying to shatter the glass of the door with a chair, endless and consistent patterns of _BANG. BANG. BANG. BANG. BANG._ He drives himself mad. It's no use. Poe is (was) one of the richest men in the world, he's most likely spent less half his life's earnings on this building's security system. The most he manages to inflict upon the gorilla glass is faint scratches. In a dangerous form of desperation, Hux works himself into utter exhaustion and slumps beside the door, panting hard and once his breathing finally evens out, he imagines Kylo.

He's by a traffic intersection. Everyone who sees him is none the wiser. He smiles at the occasional passerby. He is tranquil. The sun is in his dark locks of hair and reflects off his black coffee eyes, turning them to somewhat of a light roast. He's equal to the world around him, an ideal male image to the eyes of society. The world is his. He completed his task. Now he can find another one. He's happy. Hux gave that to him. If nothing else, Hux gave that to him.

He's happy knowing that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading this story and leaving kudos. I've worked really hard on this and it means so much to me that it's appreciated.
> 
> Hux is gonna be fine, I promise. So is Kylo.


End file.
